4 6 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 7
• Opioid-sparing pain
management. Our Lady of
the Angels Hospital in tiny
rural Bogalusa, La. (pop.
12,000), is doing its part to
fight opioid overuse and
abuse. With Raymond J.
Devlin, DNP, CRNA, a fac-
ulty member at Louisiana
State University, leading the way, the hospital is heavily emphasiz-
ing regional anesthesia.
"Every opportunity is made to provide instruction in ultrasound-
guided nerve blocks to both the nurse anesthesia students and the
staff-certified registered nurse anesthetists," says Amy Seale, RN,
BSN, the hospital's surgical services manager.
Transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks after abdominal pro-
cedures are among the newly employed weapons against pain,
along with ilioinguinal and iliohypogastric approaches, all of which
typically provide 16-20 hours of somatic pain relief, says Ms.
Seale. But to be sure, the anesthesia department follows up
either in person or by phone to make sure the analgesia is work-
ing. Most patients, she says, don't even need oral meds, thanks to
the blocks.
• Small adjustment, big results. At the Teaneck (N.J.) Surgical
Center, they pride themselves on sending patients home virtually
pain-free. So Director of Nursing Aimee Fernandez-Cruz, RN,
BSN, wanted to know why carpal tunnel patients were having pain
shortly after getting home, and more importantly, what could be
Pain,
Pain,
Go
Away
HONORABLE
MENTIONS
• ON TAP The all-CRNA practice at Our Lady of the Angels
Hospital in Bogalusa, La., is making every effort to master region-
al anesthesia procedures, such as TAP blocks.
Angela
S.
Lambert
